Dozens of photos in Judge Craig Strong’s jury room show off his colorful encounters with celebrities and historical figures.

There’s one of the judge with Coretta Scott King. And one with Desmond Tutu. And Muhammad Ali. And Kim Kardashian. And Jay-Z. At least three photos with Sean (Puffy) Combs and one at a party at Combs’ house. One from 2006 with then-Sen. Barack Obama, one with President George Bush — shot in Strong’s kitchen. And one of the judge with Michael Jackson in “somebody’s kitchen.”

In each photo, the judge wears suits in happy hues of green, yellow, pink and others.

“I told my dentist, I said look, ‘I’m responsible for more smiles than you!’ ” Strong said, Wednesday during his jury’s lunch break.

While known affectionately for his rainbow-colored wardrobe and alligator shoes, Strong’s legal career is the reason he was chosen as one of eight local African-American motivational speakers taking part in a nationwide event today called “Back to School with the HistoryMakers.”

The HistoryMakers, the nation’s largest African-American video oral history archive, aims to place 500 black leaders in schools in 30 states to inspire 25,000 youths to commit to education and excellence. U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan is chairing the event.

When he’s not doing a cameo in a movie or posing with celebrities at community service events here and across the country, Strong, 66, the grandson of a slave, is a judge in the criminal division of the 3rd Circuit Court in Wayne County. He is a founding member of the Association of Black Judges of Michigan.

“My whole purpose is to get (students) to be in court not as a criminal defendant, but as someone who is either a lawyer or a judge,” Strong said. “And I always throw some fashion in there, about always being appropriately attired for the occasion no matter what your style is.”

(Page 2 of 4)

HistoryMakersfounder and Executive Director Julieanna Richardson said the speakers are important role models. “By bringing these living leaders into today’s educational system, we are raising awareness about the achievements of the accomplished African Americans in local communities.”

Education is key

Keith, the first black newsroom editor at the Detroit News, said it’s just as important for local leaders to be exposed to students.

“I think what HistoryMakers is doing is reminding us all that we have an obligation not just to be successful ... (but) we have an obligation to make sure these young people are successful and that we are personally doing something about it.”

Keith, 62, of Detroit, also a blues guitarist, plans to play his guitar for students at Duke Ellington Conservatory of Music and Art. And to tell students to find a subject they love and stick with it.

“I considered myself very ordinary in school. I was just a plodder and a worker,” he said. “I committed to education but I didn’t call it education. I called it reading. I committed to something I loved and because I loved it, I became educated.”

Art gallery owner N’Namdi will visit Nataki Talibah Schoolhouse, a school he and his wife founded 35 years ago. Now a charter school, students there learn traditional subjects in addition to the arts and transcendental meditation.

N’Namdi believes his gallery, the N’Namdi Center for Contemporary Art, founded 31 years ago, is the oldest African-American-owned gallery in the country.

“We’ll do a talk on 50 years of abstract art primarily — an art history lesson of sorts,” N’Namdi said.

White started singing at the age of 3 with his father, blues legend and civil rights activist Josh White Sr. And the rest is the dreamy stuff that history is made of. White, 72, of Novi, began his acting career in the Broadway play, “How Long ’Til Summer?” and won a Tony in 1949 at age 8.

His message to students will be simple: Education benefits everyone in the community.

“Use your education to further yourself,” he said. “When you do it for you, you’re doing it for us.”

(Page 3 of 4)

Eight inspirational speakers

Cullen Dubose is a construction executive who sits on the boards of the Michigan Economic Growth Authority, the National City Corporation for Michigan Multi-Cities, and the Detroit Investment Fund. He has served on the Michigan Housing Council and the Michigan Minority Business Development Council. He is also a recipient of the NAACP Citizen’s Award, among others. Dubose will be visiting Charles L. Spain Elementary Middle School.

Billy Joe Evans is a chemist and emeritus chemistry professor at the University of Michigan. His research is focused on solid state chemistry, particularly the synthesis and characterization of crystal/chemical structures that directly affect the quality of human environments. He is the principal author or coauthor of more than 90 scientific publications. Evans is the recipient of the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering by the National Science Foundation, among others. He will be visiting Dixon Educational Learning Academy.

Luther Keith is a former journalist and the executive director of Arise Detroit!, a broad-based volunteer coalition. As a journalist, Keith was the first African-American sports reporter at a major Detroit daily, the first African American assigned to cover Lansing politics, and the first African-American newsroom editor at the Detroit News. Keith also was the director of Wayne State University’s Journalism Institute for Minorities. Keith was inducted into Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame in 1995. He will be visiting Duke Ellington Conservatory of Music and Art.

Reuben A. Munday is a real estate and commercial lawyer. He and his firm represented various municipal corporations in the development of major projects in the city of Detroit, including the Trolley Plaza Apartments; Trappers Alley; the Robert L. Millender Center; the Madison Center courthouse; the Cobo Center Expansion Project; the Chrysler Jefferson Avenue Assembly Plant; and the Chrysler Mack Avenue Engine Plant. Munday was the first African-American general counsel for downtown Detroit development efforts. He will be visiting Martin Luther King Jr. Junior/Senior High School.

(Page 4 of 4)

George N’Namdi is the founder and CEO of N’Namdi Center for Contemporary Art. He has owned many art galleries, including the Jazzonia Gallery and the G.R. N’Namdi Gallery. N’Namdi and his wife also founded the Nataki Talibah Schoolhouse, a Detroit-based charter school that teaches transcendental meditation while emphasizing the arts. He will be visiting that school.

George Irving Shirley is an opera singer and emeritus music instructor at the University of Michigan. Shirley became the first African-American high school music teacher in the city of Detroit. A renowned tenor, Shirley also was the first African-American tenor to be awarded a contract with the Metropolitan Opera and is sought after across the globe. He has played major roles in more than 20 operas, and won a Grammy Award for a recording of his performance in Mozart’s “Cosi Fan Tutte.” He will be visiting Logan Elementary School in Ann Arbor.

The Hon. Craig Strong is a judge of the 3rd Circuit Court in Wayne County. He served as the youngest president of the Wolverine Bar Association and was president and founding member of the Association of Black Judges of Michigan. He was also influential in the establishment of the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Detroit. Strong had a cameo appearance as a judge on the ABC show Detroit 187, which ran 2010-11 and more recently in “Dolls of Voodoo,” also known as “Haitian Nights,” released this summer starring Kenya Moore. He will be visiting Martin Luther King Jr. Junior/Senior High School.

Josh White Jr. began his acting career on the Broadway play “How Long Til Summer?” as a child, for which he received a Tony Award for Best Child Actor. He has appeared in the Off-Broadway play “Take a Giant Step” and more than fifty American television dramas. As a non-mainstream acoustic musician, White has headlined more than 2,000 college concerts and was named the Voice of the Peace Corps and the Voice of VISTA by the United States government in 1980. White will be visiting the Duke Ellington Conservatory of Music and Art.